City seeks to trace pork origins

HCM CITY — Starting yesterday, only pork with traceable origins is ostensibly allowed to enter HCM City’s two wholesale markets, but inspections by authorities found that only around 13 per cent of the pork in the markets actually had clear origins, according to the Department of Industry and Trade.

The department in collaboration with other agencies and the managements of Hóc Môn and Bình Điền markets checked the pork that was entering them.

Nguyễn Ngọc Hòa, deputy director of the department, said on July 30 night and July 31 morning, for instance, some 8,400 pig carcasses were brought in, but only 1,205 had traceable origins.

He said that 35 per cent had information entered in their rings by farmers, but the rate falls to 21 per cent when they leave slaughterhouses following lapses by veterinary staff, and falls further to 13 per cent when they reach the two wholesale markets.

The city’s programme to trace the origin of pork involves four locations – farms, abattoirs, wholesale distributors, and retailers.

It has a connected information system, and if any part of the chain does not record information, consumers cannot check the origin of the meat, Hòa explained.

Around 85 per cent of the pork consumed in the city market is supplied from other cities and provinces, and the city is the only locality in the country to have such a programme.

So the city can only request authorities in other provinces to help in this regard, he said.

To improve the situation, relevant city agencies should co-operate with their counterparts in other provinces to persuade pig farmers to record information about pigs and instruct abattoirs and traders to accept only pigs with clear origins, he said.

The department has called on the city government to take a tougher line with violators.

Hòa said pork sold through modern trade channels is properly regulated. Thus, if the portion sold through traditional retail channels -- which get their pork from the two wholesale markets -- is also tightly controlled, all the pork sold in the city would have traceable origins, he said. — VNS